Two miners trapped following cave-in at Rusal bauxite mine in Urals

YEKATERINBURG. March 25 (Interfax) - Two workers are trapped behind rubble following a cave-in at the Kalinskaya Mine, operated by aluminum giant Rusal's North Urals Bauxite Mine division, the division's press office told Interfax.

More than 10 people are involved in the operation to rescue the miners, who are sending signals by knocking on pipes, Valery Gorelykh, head of the regional Interior Ministry Main Directorate press service, told Interfax.

"The identities of the trapped workers have already been established. These are two local residents, born in 1992 and 1997. At the moment, they are showing signs of life, knocking on pipes. Twelve people from a special mine rescue team are involved in the rescue operation to get them out, as well as their most experienced colleagues in the mine," Gorelykh said.

The cave-in occurred early on March 25. North Urals Bauxite Mine cleared the debris before the special services arrived. Two branches of the Paramilitary Mountain Rescue Squad arrived at the scene and rescue efforts are underway.

"Law enforcement bodies are investigating to determine whether safety instructions were issued and whether they were violated during underground work. A substantiated procedural decision will be reached on the basis of the results of the inspection," Gorelykh said.

He said the incident occurred in the settlement of Kalya in the Severouralsk district. The mine dispatcher alerted local police at 07:35 local time or 05:35 Moscow time.

"The incident occurred at 04:21 (02:21 Moscow time), according to preliminary data, at a depth of 1,130 meters. As a result of a seismic incident - a rock burst with an energy of 1.1 per 10/5 J - a rock collapse occurred," Gorelykh said.

The regional prosecutor's office said it, too, would be carrying out an investigation. The prosecutor, Igor Gusakov, was traveling to the scene.

"The prosecutor's response measures will depend on the results of the inspection," it said.